Left Behind
by 23a
Summary: Ginny Weasley is tired of being left behind. Now her boyfriend, her brother, and one of her best friends have gone off on a dangerous mission to defeat the most evil wizard of the age, and Ginny is stuck at school, which is totally unfair. But she's not backing down. With the help of her friends, she will stand up to evil. Because evil hasn't yet met the likes of her.
1. A New Year Begins

Ginny Weasley woke up, looked out the window of her tiny room, and sighed. She was going back to Hogwarts today. Once upon a time, she had been more excited about that than anything else. Now, she didn't want to be there at all. She wanted to be with Harry, her boyfriend...ex-boyfriend, she supposed. And Hermione, her best friend. And Ron, who was her brother, even if he could be a git sometimes. But she couldn't be with them. She had to go back to school. It wasn't fair. Three of the people she cared about most in the world had left to go on some secret quest, and not only could she not go, she couldn't even know what the quest was. She knew that they had to keep secrets in order to survive this war, but why did they have to keep those secrets from her? She was trustworthy. Not a single one of them had told her. She had known Ron wouldn't; he thought of her as his little sister too much, he would never trust her with anything. And Harry did trust her, but he was too much of a noble prick to be willing to share his burden with her. But Hermione usually did tell her things, and she had kept this secret. Granted, maybe that meant it really was something Ginny shouldn't know, but she wasn't exactly thinking rationally now, and she just wanted to know the truth.

When she went downstairs, her parents were in the kitchen, Dad sitting at the table and reading the _Daily Prophet_ and Mum cooking breakfast. "Are you all packed, dear?" Mum asked.

"Yes, Mum, I'm all packed. But I don't want to go back."

"You have to," Dad said. "Attendance is compulsory this year. We're not risking you raising suspicion."

"What about Ron?"

"We told the school he's sick with Spattergroit," Mum said. "They believed the story, so it should be okay... oh, if he would just come home and go to school!"

"He's saving the world, Mum."

"Why does it have to be him?"

"Because he wanted to help," Ginny said. "I'd be with them if they hadn't told me I couldn't come."

"You most certainly would not!" Mum exclaimed. "While I disapprove of their choice, they are all adults and can make such choices. You are underage."

"Besides, you still have the Trace on you," Dad said. "You could get caught, and that's the last thing we want." He lowered the paper and looked her right in the eyes. "You'll be safe this year, won't you?"

"Dad, the school is being controlled by Death Eaters. What exactly do you mean by 'be safe'?"

"Just-please, Ginny. If anything happened to you-"

"Alright. I'll be safe."

She looked around her at the empty house. It had been like this since the wedding, but it really was quite strange. Bill and Fleur had moved to their new house, Charlie was back in Romania, Percy was off in London being a Ministry git, the twins had gone back to the flat above their shop, and of course, Ron was off who knew where with Harry and Hermione. "You two will be safe too, won't you?"

"Oh, there's no need to worry about us, dear," Mum said with a smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

At ten o'clock, they headed out for King's Cross Station.

* * *

Ginny walked down the train, looking for a compartment. As she walked, she stumbled into someone. "Hi, Ginny," said Hannah Abbott.

"Oh... hey, Hannah." Nobody had seen Hannah since fall of last year, when she had left the school after finding out her mother had been killed. "How've you been?" That was a really stupid question.

"Well, I've been alright, I suppose." She sighed. "But I've got to repeat the sixth year, since I missed so much of last year."

"Oh. Well, then I guess we're in the same year. Maybe we'll see each other in class."

"Maybe." Hannah smiled a little bit. "Well, see you around, I guess."

"See you."

Hannah walked into a compartment with Ernie Macmillan, Terry Boot, and some people Ginny didn't recognize, and Ginny kept looking for a compartment.

"Ginny!" called a familiar and friendly voice.

"Hi, Luna," she said, smiling brightly.

"It's good to see you."

"Yeah, you too."

"I was so afraid after the wedding... I wanted to contact you, but I was afraid Death Eaters might be watching your house or something."

"No, they've left us alone, for the most part," Ginny said. "Harry, Ron, and Hermione left on their grand quest to defeat You-Know-Who, though."

"Oh. Well, come join our compartment, will you?"

"Sure." She followed Luna into a compartment that contained Neville Longbottom and Seamus Finnigan.

"Hey, Ginny," Neville said with a smile.

"Hey." She looked at him and Seamus. "So, you two are the only Gryffindor boys in your year, then?"

"Guess so," said Neville. "We figured Ron would stay away, and obviously Harry wasn't coming."

"Yeah, Harry, Ron, and Hermione went on some secret quest to defeat You-Know-Who."

"And then Dean couldn't come back," Seamus said. "Cause of the no Muggleborns rule." His fists clenched.

"Yeah." Ginny sighed. "The school's being run by Death Eaters and there's basically nothing we can do about it."

"We can fight back," said Neville.

"How? We can't fight them. They could summon You-Know-Who himself."

"I don't mean literally fight," he said. "We can just refuse to follow their orders."

"Oh. Well, of course," Ginny said.

"At least we'll still have Professor McGonagall," said Seamus.

"Yeah."

"Dumbledore's Army will stay strong," said Luna.

Ginny smiled. "It sure will."

"Hopefully Harry and the others defeat You-Know-Who soon."

"But if they don't," said Ginny, "We'll fight for ourselves."

"Yeah, we will," said Neville. "They won't win."


	2. The (Un)Welcome Feast

Sitting in a carriage with Luna, Neville, and Seamus, Ginny kept fidgeting her fingers. She had to be doing _something_ ; already the whole situation was driving her insane. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were off on a secret quest, all her other family members were in the Order (except Percy, but he didn't really count anymore), people were going out and fighting every day, and where was she? In a place controlled by Death Eaters, in particular one awful traitor, and essentially powerless to do anything about it. Without really thinking about it, she kicked the side of the carriage.

"Ginny?" Luna said, sounding concerned. "Why did you just kick the carriage?"

"Sorry," she said, blushing a little in embarrassment. "I'm just angry. The Ministry is in You-Know-Who's control, our school has been taken over by Death Eaters, _Snape,_ of all people, is headmaster, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione just ditched me-I mean, us-to go on some insane quest."

"But it's like you were saying, Ginny," Neville said. "We don't need them."

"Not to stand up to the Death Eaters, no. But..." She swallowed; she felt guilty saying it. " _I_ need them."

"They'll be back," Luna said.

"You don't know that, Luna. None of us know that. About anyone. Any one of us or our families could be gone at any moment, with no warning." She sighed. "This is war. This is what the adults were trying to protect us from. But now it's come. And everyone we love is in danger."

"We have to have hope that it'll turn out alright," Luna said.

"She's right," said Seamus. "Otherwise we would just give up, and we can't do that."

"I know," said Ginny. "Sorry. I'm acting like an idiot."

"No you're not," said Neville.

* * *

When they arrived at the school, Ginny shuffled into the Great Hall with a sigh, Luna saying goodbye and walking to the Ravenclaw table and Neville and Seamus sitting by her at the Gryffindor table. It was significantly emptier than in previous years, without all the Muggleborns. All the tables were emptier. Even Slytherin, though it was missing a few fewer students than the others. It hadn't occurred to Ginny that there would be Muggleborn Slytherins, but then, of course there would be. Plenty of Muggleborns were ambitious and cunning.

When Professor McGonagall came in carrying the Sorting Hat, Ginny relaxed slightly at the familiar face. She would never let Snape take over this school. The line of first years was shorter than it generally was, again, because there were no Muggleborns present. When the sorting was over and everyone had sat down, Professor Snape stood up, and Ginny fought the urge to puke a little bit.

"Thank you, thank you," Professor Snape was saying in his drawl. "I would like to welcome you all to the new term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I have some announcements, but they can wait until after the meal has been served." He sat down, and food appeared on their plates; Ginny found herself greatly missing Dumbledore's eccentric speeches. His death had probably been the most shocking event of her life, though Sirius's death the year before had also had quite an effect on her. Then Moody's death just a few months ago. Until she was fourteen, there hadn't been any hugely affecting deaths in her life; she had only been seven when Uncle Bilius had died, and other than that she really couldn't think of any. But since then there had been several. And she had the dreadful feeling that she was not done losing people, that the truly awful part of the war had just begun. Her food, though it was as delicious as always, tasted like cardboard. Her thoughts drifted, and she thought about Dean not being back this year. Even thought it hadn't worked out between them, she still cared about him, and it was strange to think that he would not be back. She hoped he would be alright. Colin Creevey and his brother Dennis weren't here, either. Hopefully they would stay in the Muggle world and away from this whole mess.

When Snape stood up again, a few people booed him; Seamus even joined in, and Ginny resisted the urge to do so herself. It wouldn't do any good, and she would have enough suspicion on her as Harry Potter's ex-girlfriend, she didn't need to garner any more.

"Now," said Snape, when the booing had finally stopped. "I have a few announcements. First of all, the Forbidden Forest is off-limits to all students. Second, and much more importantly-and I expect you all to listen to this-the Minsitry has instructed me to give an order. If anybody in this room has any information on the whereabouts of Harry Potter, this person should come forward. Immediately." Ginny shivered, even though it wasn't cold. "Now. I would like to introduce our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Amycus Carrow." The man stood up, and Ginny felt a chill again. He was a Death Eater. She recognized him from the battle last year, the one that had cost Dumbledore his life.

"Thank you, Severus." Carrow sat down again.

"And our new Muggle Studies teacher, Alecto Carrow." The woman stood up, and Ginny wondered how her Muggle Studies classes would go. Most likely just rants about how awful Muggles were... though it could go further than simply rants. Ginny shook her head to remove the thought.

Snape had a couple more things to say, but Ginny tuned them out. At the end of the feast, they walked up to Gryffindor tower. She sat down by the fireplace, staring at the flickering flames, wondering what Harry, Ron, and Hermione were doing right now. The others were right; she had to stop thinking about them, they were doing what they had to do and she had to stay here and do her part to help. But as she got up, went into her dormitory, and lay down in bed with a smile at Arnold, she couldn't help but feel a little bit alone.


	3. Forming an Army

Ginny sat down by Neville, Seamus, Lavender Brown, and Parvati Patil at breakfast the next day. She missed having Hermione to talk to; for whatever reason, she didn't get along all too well with the girls in her year. They were nice enough, but Hermione had always been her best friend, and now Hermione was away, as were the two other people she was closest to at Hogwarts.

"Oh, there you are," Neville said. "I was thinking. I think we should reassemble Dumbledore's Army."

Ginny nodded. It would be even more fitting now if they did it to honor their late headmaster. "Seems like a good idea."

"And if we're going to do that, we're going to need a new leader."

"That's true," Ginny agreed. It was only logical; Neville had the best combination of age and experience among them, and had been fiercely loyal to Harry all of their years at Hogwarts.

"So, what do you say, Ginny?" he asked.

"What?"

"Do you want to be the leader?"

"No."

"But we need-"

"You, Neville," she said. "You should lead Dumbledore's Army."

There were nods of assent from the other people present.

"You're the most qualified," said Parvati.

"You know what you're doing," Lavender agreed.

"Definitely the best choice, mate," said Seamus.

"What-but-Ginny is Harry's ex-girlfriend-"

"So what?" she said. "Having Harry Potter fall in love with you is not equivalent to actually being a good leader. You've been by Harry's side all his years at Hogwarts, and as much as I hate to say it, your being of age _does_ make a difference." She hated being so young; even by the end of this school year, she wouldn't be of age, not until next August. And she hated everyone telling her that she was too young to do things, but a part of her _did_ know they had a point.

"I'm not good enough to be leader," Neville said, blushing.

"Sure you are," said Parvati.

"Let's take a vote," Lavender suggested. "All in favor of Neville becoming the new leader of Dumbledore's Army."

They all raised their hands except Neville. Looking around, he grudgingly raised his hand, too. "Well, I still think we should run it by the rest of Dumbledore's Army," he said.

"Who's still here?" Lavender asked.

"Well, there's Padma," Parvati said.

"And Luna," Ginny added. "And... uh... Michael Corner's still here." She blushed a little bit. Michael had been her first boyfriend, and though they had been broken up for over a year, it was still a bit awkward being around him. "Also Hannah Abbott; I talked to her on the train. She's in my year now."

"Hannah's back?" Neville asked.

"Yeah."

"Cool." Ginny frowned. Did Neville have a crush on Hannah? "And, uh, there's Ernie Macmillan, and Susan Bones."

"Right," said Seamus, "And Anthony Goldstein and Terry Boot, from Ravenclaw."

"And Zacharias Smith," said Parvati.

"Uch, can we not count him as a member of Dumbledore's Army anymore?" Ginny asked. Zacharias was rude and annoying, and she couldn't stand being around him.

"Help is help," said Neville.

"I doubt he still wants to be a member. Not now that it means more danger rather than less."

"It's worth asking, though, isn't it?" said Lavender.

"I guess. Is that really everybody who's still here?"

"Yeah," said Neville. "We don't have Dean, Justin Finch-Fletchley, or the Creevey brothers."

"So that's what we're down to," said Ginny. "Thirteen, maybe fourteen people."

"We can fight with that many," said Seamus.

"We can fight with any amount," said Parvati. "The question is whether we can win."

"We don't really have a choice," Ginny said.

"Do we still have access to the Galleons?" Neville asked.

"Not everyone would have brought theirs," said Seamus. "We can just go and contact everybody who was a member."

"I'll talk to Hannah," Neville said.

"Luna's pretty much already on board," said Ginny. "You guys will probably run into all the others in your classes; let's have a meeting this Saturday."

"You sure Snape doesn't know about the Room of Requirement?" Neville asked.

"No. But it's the safest option we have."

"Fair enough."

* * *

Ginny sat down in Transfiguration and smiled at Professor McGonagall. She was the closest thing to hope left in this school; she would defend them all from Snape's evil doings, and from the evil of the Carrows. Sure, she was getting rather old, but she was still a very formidable witch.

"Hello, class," she said. "Now. You all are sixth-year students, which means that you have all passed your O.W.L.s with at least an Exceeds Expectations." Ginny had indeed; O.W.L.s weren't the most important thing considering an evil regime had taken the country, but she had received Exceeds Expectations in Transfiguration, Herbology, Potions, and Care of Magical Creatures, Outstanding in Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts, Acceptable in Astronomy and Divination, and Poor in History of Magic, but she just couldn't be bothered to pay too much attention to it. "Now," Professor McGonagall continued. "This year we will be focusing on some more advanced magic, including nonverbal spells. If any of you feel you are not up to the challenge, you may drop the class." That wasn't going to happen. "And Ms. Weasley," she added. "Please see me after class."

Ginny did as she was asked, a little bit confused. "Professor."

"Ms. Weasley. I am going to ask this once and only once, then I assure you I will let the matter be." She lowered her voice. "Do you know the location of Harry Potter?"

Ginny shook her head. "He, Ron, and Hermione went on some secret mission to defeat You-Know-Who. They won't tell me or anyone else anything about it."

Professor McGonagall nodded. "Alright. That is all."

Ginny nodded and started to leave, then turned back. "Oh, professor?"

"Yes?"

"We're not going to give up fighting, are we?"

A faint smile formed on her lips. "No, Ms. Weasley, we are not."

Ginny smiled back, then left the classroom.


	4. The New Dynasty

Ginny went into Defense Against the Dark Arts, swallowing hard. She did not know what awaited her in this class, but she did know that Amycus Carrow was a Death Eater. She sat down in her seat and looked at the front of the classroom. He stood there, in all his sick, sneering glory. "Hello, class."

She already wanted to use her Bat-Bogey Hex on him.

"Welcome to Dark Arts class."

Oh god, he had changed the name. It was actually going to be a class on the dark arts. That was disgusting.

"Now. Your education in this matter has been terrible, and inefficient, and I am going to teach you all the proper ways to defend yourselves."

Ginny was so sure.

"First of all, who knows of the previously called 'Unforgivable Curses'?"

 _Previously called?_ They weren't unforgivable anymore? Ginny felt actually ill.

A girl in her year raised a shaky hand. Amycus barked an indistinguishable word at her.

"They were called that because they resulted in a sentence in Azkaban," she said, her voice small.

"Right," said Amycus. "Now, Azkaban is reserved for those Mudblood traitors."

Ginny actually threw up in her mouth a little bit. Dad had told them near the end of the summer about rumors of Muggleborns being thrown in Azkaban, but she hadn't wanted to believe it. And here it was, admitted by a teacher.

"Now, who can name the Unforgivable Curses?"

Ginny could name them all, of course, had had the Killing Curse thrown at her repeatedly last year. But she said nothing. Nobody said anything.

Amycus snorted. "They really haven't taught you anything, have they? Well, alright. There's the Imperius Curse, a very important one; with it, you can control your enemies, make them do your bidding. Who wants me to demonstrate?

 _No! No!_ He couldn't be serious. He wanted to demonstrate an Unforgivable Curse on a student? What was next, was he going to kill one?

"What, no volunteers? Well, alright. We'll wait and see who acts up."

Ginny felt another pang of sickness. Was he implying that they were going to use unforgivable curses as punishment?

For the rest of the class, he lectured them about the various ways of harming one's enemy. When she was finally free, Ginny ran to the nearest bathroom and threw up in the toilet. How? How was this allowed? How could this be happening to Hogwarts?

* * *

When she got to lunch, she felt a little bit less ill, and sat with Neville, Seamus, Lavender, and Parvati again. "Had Defense Against the Dark Arts yet?" she asked.

"No," said Seamus. "How bad is it?"

She shook her head. "He calls it Dark Arts."

"You're kidding," said Parvati.

"Nope. Not kidding. And it gets worse. He wanted to demonstrate the Unforgivable Curses. _On students._ "

They all put down their utensils, and Neville turned slightly paler. "Really?" he asked.

"Yep. He asked for a volunteer to go under the Imperius Curse. Nobody volunteered, so he said he would wait until somebody misbehaved. I think they're planning to use them as punishment."

"Dumbledore would never have let this happen," said Lavender.

"Yeah, well, he's dead," said Seamus.

"Thank you, Seamus, I know that," said Lavender.

"So, how did the recruitment go?" Ginny asked, picking at her food.

"I saw Hannah during my free period and got her on board," said Neville. "She said she would talk to Ernie and Susan. And she'll mention it to Zacharias Smith"

"I talked to Padma," said Parvati. "She said she would talk to Anthony, Terry, and Michael."

"Great," said Ginny. "I can talk to Luna during Charms today. Have we agreed on a meeting time?"

"We told them all Thursday night at 6:00."

"Sounds good to me," said Ginny. "But if we're going to fight this evil regime, I think we're going to need some more members."

Neville nodded. "We should get out a message somehow."

"We don't want to make ourselves too obvious, though," said Lavender. "We could get in trouble."

"If we get in trouble, then we get in trouble," Ginny said.

"Well, we don't want to get kicked out," said Parvati.

"Attendance is compulsory," Ginny said. "I don't think anybody's going to get kicked out."

"Still, we should be careful," said Lavender.

"Maybe we should leave people notes," said Seamus.

"Hmm," said Ginny. "Maybe. Or we could just leave giant messages throughout the school that say Dumbledore's Army: Still Recruiting. Anonymous, but very present."

"As leader, I think we should use Ginny's idea," Neville said.

"Sounds good," Seamus said.

"Fine," said Lavender.

* * *

Walking into Charms, Ginny immediately sat beside Luna. "Hey."

Luna smiled. "Hi. How's your day going?"

"Not great," she said. "I had Dark Arts class today."

Luna frowned. "You mean Defense Against the Dark Arts?"

"Not anymore."

"You're kidding," she said, her eyes widening. "Are there Wrackspurts in your brain?"

"No, Luna, I'm serious. They call it Dark Arts class now. And they implied that they're going to be using Unforgivable Curses as punishment."

Whatever was left of Luna's smile faded. "Really?"

"Yep."

Professor Flitwick stepped in front of the class on his stack of books. "Greetings, class. Congratulations all of you on your O.W.L. scores that allowed you to continue in this subject. Today we will be reviewing some of the previous years' charms, to get you back into the swing of things after a whole summer. Next class we will begin the more advanced work."

"So," Ginny muttered to Luna as she tried to turn her eyebrows yellow, "Dumbledore's army is meeting Thursday at 6."

Luna nodded. "I'll be there."

"We're also planning to put out a recruitment ad."

"Sounds like a good idea."

"Your eyebrows are yellow."

"Are they? Congratulations, Ginny."

After class, as they walked out of the room, Luna said, "You know, I know we don't need Harry and the others to fight. But I do wish they were here."

Ginny sighed. "Tell me about it."


	5. The Meeting

At dinner on Thursday, Ginny bolted down her food, noticing Parvati, Lavender, Seamus, and Neville doing the same. At around 5:40, Neville and Seamus got up and left the dining hall; two minutes later, Lavender and Parvati followed. At 5:45, Ginny got up and walked out as well. She made her way over to the secret wall, entering the Room of Requirement. The other Gryffindors were already there, as was Luna. A minute later, Padma Patil and Terry Boot entered, followed by Anthony Goldstein and Michael Corner after another minute. Ginny blushed a bit when Michael entered, but ignored him. Hannah Abbott entered next, exchanging smiles with Neville. Then Ernie Macmillan and Susan Bones arrived.

"Zacharias Smith not coming?" Neville asked.

"Nope," Susan replied.

"Alright, then. So, um, first order of business I guess, um, the Gryffindors all agreed to make me the leader of Dumbledore's Army... so... we're going to vote on that. If you want me to be the leader, raise your hand."

Everybody raised their hands, and Neville smiled. "Right then. Well, as leader of Dumbledore's Army, I think we need to focus on recruitment. The more people we have, the better we can fight against Snape and the Carrows. Ginny had the idea of writing Dumbledore's Army: Still Recruiting anonymously all over the school. Does anybody object to that idea?"

Nobody said anything.

"Alright. Cool."

"What spell are we learning today?" Anthony asked.

"Um, I guess, we could learn... um... the shield charm might be a good one," Neville said, going a bit red.

"Good idea, Neville," said Ginny with a smile.

They started practicing; Ginny, having mastered the shield charm, was shooting her Bat-Bogey hex at people to see if they had successfully mastered it. By the end of the meeting, everyone was performing sufficiently. They all gathered briefly at the end.

"Good job, everyone," Neville said with a smile. "This is a good first step toward resisting the Death Eaters."

"Ginny," said Michael, and everyone turned to him.

Ginny swallowed. "Yeah?"

"Have you heard from Harry Potter?"

Now all the eyes in the room were on Ginny, and she sighed. "No. All I know is that Harry, Ron, and Hermione are off on some sort of quest to defeat You-Know-Who, and they won't tell anybody anything about it." She swallowed again, then said, "But we don't need them. We can fight here on our own."

"We sure can," said Neville.

"Got it," said Michael, and he gave her a small smile, which she hesitantly returned.

Everyone started to walk out, and Neville said, "Do you really think we can do this?"

She shrugged. "I kind of have to think that, don't I? If I don't there's no way we can do this. But yes, I do. I believe that anything is possible if you've got enough nerve." She sighed. "I said that exact same thing to Harry once."

"You're really in love with him, huh?"

She smiled. "Always have been. Since I first saw him at King's Cross Station when I was ten. Of course, back then I was in love with the idea of him, with the celebrity. But then he showed me who he really was, and I was super lucky that the celebrity I loved back then happened to be the exact kind of guy I always wanted."

"I hope you guys end up getting back together," Neville said.

She sighed. "Me too. But a lot of things would have to go pretty right for that to happen." The war would have to end. They would have to win. Harry would have to survive. And so would she. With all the fear for those that she loved, she didn't think much about the fact that it was entirely possible that, in a war, she could die, too.

"Well, goodnight, Ginny," Neville said as they reached the Gryffindor common room.

"Goodnight, Neville."

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, Ginny saw Pigwidgeon fly through the window of the Great Hall. For a moment her heart jumped, thinking it might be a letter from Ron, but then she remembered that Ron had most definitely not taken his owl with him when he had escaped the wedding. It was a letter from her parents. She pulled it out.

 _Dear Ginny,_

 _We hope that your first week at Hogwarts has gone alright. We're still alright here. Ron's Spattergroit isn't any better, unfortunately._

Ginny sighed. Of course, it made sense that they had put that in there, in case Pig had been intercepted. But she still wished her parents didn't have to tell lies.

 _Things are going alright for your father at the Ministry._

That meant he hadn't been fired or kidnapped yet, which was good news.

 _He saw Percy in the lift the other day._

Ginny rolled her eyes. What did she care about Percy? He had sided with the Ministry over his family.

 _Bill and Fleur are doing well in their new home, and Fred and George are alright as well, although business is a bit down._

Well, of course business was down; who had time to buy jokes while Death Eaters controlled the entire world?

 _No updates from Charlie, but we presume he's alright._

Voldemort and his followers weren't in Romania, so Charlie was the safest out of all of them.

 _We look forward to seeing you at Christmas._

 _Love, Mum._

She rolled the letter up with another sigh. There was barely anything in the letter. There were so many things she wanted to hear, things that it wasn't safe for her parents to say via owl post. At least she knew that her entire family was still alive. At least as of the sending of the letter. Ron was the one she worried about most, of course, him and Harry and Hermione; they were out there, doing some secret thing that no doubt would put them in more danger. The rest of them had to pretend to go about their daily lives, had to not draw suspicion in any way. Already they were blood traitors, known associates of Harry Potter, and either known members of or family of known members of the Order of the Phoenix-even if they didn't have the names of everyone who was in it this time, they knew Mum's brothers had been in it before. Their whole family was walking on thin ice, and it could break at any moment. And she hated it. And there was hardly anything she could do about it. She looked down at her toast. Somehow, she wasn't that hungry anymore.


	6. Friendship and Detention

Ginny sighed as she did her Potions homework. She was finding it very difficult to focus on her schoolwork, given everything that was going on. But she had to think about her future, assuming that she had one. It was now October, and there had been no further contact from anyone in her family. She knew they were most likely still alive, as the Prophet had not reported any of them dead, but it drove her mad not to be able to know what was going on with them.

"Hi," said Luna, walking up to her.

She smiled as her friend sat down beside her. "Hey, Luna. What's going on?"

Luna shrugged. "The Ministry isn't happy with the things my father is writing in the Quibbler."

"Good," said Ginny. "That means he's writing the right things."

"Yes. He supports Harry, and he's not afraid to say so."

Ginny sighed. "I still have no idea what's going on with Harry."

"Well, wherever he is, he's probably thinking of you," said Luna.

"You think? Pretty sure he's got more important things to focus on."

"He loves you," Luna said. "And you love him."

"I really do."

"I think the two of you will be alright, once all this is over."

"I hope so," said Ginny with another sigh. "If all of this is ever over."

"It will be."

"I wish I shared your optimism, Luna. How do you do it?"

"I do it because the alternative is to think negative things, and I don't like to think negative thoughts. If I can avoid them."

"You're really something special."

"Well, thank you, Ginny. You're special too."

"So, do you have any idea how to do this Potions assignment?"

Luna shrugged. "I'm not taking Potions this year, so I wouldn't think I'm a good person to ask."

"Oh, right. Which N.E.W.T.s are you going for?"

"Care of Magical Creatures, Herbology, Astronomy, Ancient Runes, and Charms. And you're doing Charms, Potions, Transfiguration, Arithmancy, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, yes?"

"That's right. But it's not actually Defense Against the Dark Arts anymore."

Luna sighed. "I still can't believe that."

"It's crazy what's happening to Hogwarts."

"I know."

"This school used to be the only safe place in the world. Now that it's been taken over, I guess nowhere is safe anymore."

"That's what we're here for. To fight back against the death eaters."

"Yeah. We do outnumber them."

"That's true. There's only three of them."

"Even if one of them is headmaster."

"I really thought that Snape was on our side," Luna said with a sigh. "I guess I was wrong."

"I never really believed it," said Ginny. "He always seemed so mean."

"Well, that doesn't necessarily mean evil, though," Luna said.

"No, I suppose it doesn't," Ginny said. "But I never liked him."

"I never said I liked him."

Ginny chuckled. "Well, I've got to get back to class. See you later."

"See you."

* * *

"You're late to class," Amycus Carrow snarled at her as she walked in. "Detention. Tonight, 6pm."

"No thanks," Ginny said, rolling her eyes.

"Now you have detention for the rest of the week."

With a sigh, she sat down.

"Today, we will be learning the Cruciatus Curse." Ginny got the sick feeling in her stomach that she usually got in this class. "You will practice on each other." Ginny clenched her fists.

Almost nobody really got the spell to work, of course, because it had to be meant in order to be properly used, and none of them really wanted to hurt their classmates. But just that fact that this was happening was beyond wrong. She hated what her school had turned into.

* * *

Ginny showed up for her detention that evening with a sick feeling all throughout her body.

"Miss Weasley," Carrow snarled at her when she entered the room.

"What'll I be doing today? Lines?" She thought about the lines Dolores Umbridge had made Harry write a couple years ago, and hoped that she would not have to do something like that.

"No," he said with a snarl. "You'll be standing over there."

With a frown, she stood where he pointed. Eyes widening, she saw him pull his wand out of his pocket. She swallowed. What was he going to do to her?

"Crucio," he said.

Excruciating pain spread through her entire body, but she sealed her lips together and kept from screaming. No way would she give him the satisfaction of making her scream. She distracted herself from the pain by focusing on her anger, on the fact that this man had the right to do this without any fear of retribution. What was happening to her school, to her world?

"You can go," Carrow snarled after a couple of minutes.

Shaking slightly, she walked back to the Gryffindor common room.

* * *

"What happened?" Neville asked as she walked through the portrait hole. She must still be incredibly pale. She sat down in the chair, then spoke shakily.

"He used... he used the Cruciatus Curse on me." Her voice was weaker than she had intended.

Neville's mouth dropped open. He placed a hand on her arm. "How-how could he do that?"

"It's allowed," Ginny muttered. "The world belongs to death eaters now."

Neville shook his head. "This has to stop."

"That's up to Harry, Ron, and Hermione," Ginny said. "Whatever they're doing, it's going to stop You-Know-Who. All we can do is refuse to give in."

"And we never will," he said.

"No. We won't."

"Is this going to be the norm, though? Using the Cruciatus Curse?"

Ginny shrugged. "Guess so. Better avoid getting detention, hadn't we?"

"I hope they do what they have to do soon."

"Me too." She sighed. "I'm heading to the library. See you later, Neville."

"See you."

She walked out of the portrait hole and went off to the library to work.


	7. Potterwatch

**A/N: I apologize profusely for the long break! College work is time consuming, apparently, and so is binge-watching stupidly long shows. There will not be another gap this long. There will, however, be an annoyingly repetitive message on all my stories, so sorry about that.**

"Ginny!" said Neville, running up to her in the common room.

"Hmm?"

Now he leaned in close and started to whisper. "My gran, she sent me a letter, and she told me about this radio station-Potterwatch."

"Potterwatch?"

"Mm-hmm."

"So, what, they look for Harry?"

"Well, no. It's just a name. But they report. You know, stuff the Ministry won't. And apparently your brothers run it."

"What?!" She sat up straight now; any news of any of her brothers was well-received.

"Yeah, Fred and George. And their friend Lee Jordan. There's passwords to listen to it; Gran sent me the next one."

"That was dangerous."

"She folded the whole letter inside of a box of candy. Which was inside another box of candy. Gran's a clever one."

Ginny grinned. "She sure is."

"The next broadcast is going to be tomorrow night, I think we should have a meeting of Dumbledore's Army."

Ginny nodded. "Let's let everybody know."

* * *

"So to clarify," said Susan Bones, "It's called Potterwatch, but it doesn't actually have anything to do with Harry Potter?"

"It has to do with our cause," said Ginny, "And Harry is kind of the headliner."

"It's about to start," Neville said. He pointed his wand at the radio. "Prongs."

"Harry's dad is the password?"

Neville shrugged. "It's mostly fallen Order members."

"Alright, shh!" said Seamus.

"Welcome to Potterwatch," came Fred's voice, and Ginny almost cried in her relief at hearing her brother alive and well.

"Yes, welcome," Lee chimed in. "River here, and Rodent-"

"Rapier-"

"Whatever. We're here with some unfortunate news this week; it seems like the Ministry is, in fact, putting Muggleborn witches and wizards in Azkaban for no reason other than their parentage."

"Right," said Fred. "So, all you Muggleborns out there-either hide out in the Muggle world or get on the move, because they're tracking us. All of us. They've officially labelled Harry Potter as Undesirable No. 1, as I'm sure most of you know. The who Ministry is out looking for him, while he's out there saving all of our skin. We're going to say, again; Harry, if you're listening-keep fighting. And all the rest of you out there, you keep fighting too."

"That's all we have for this broadcast, our next one will be in four days and the password will be 'Lovegood.'"

"Oh, that's nice!" Luna said with a smile.

"Until then, stay safe and support Harry Potter!"

"Well, that was... something," said Lavender.

"It was news," said Ginny.

"Not much," said Terry Boot.

"My brother is alive," said Ginny. "Maybe that's nothing to you, but it's something to me. And they're reporting on the dead, so if they haven't reported on your family that means they're probably alive."

"That's a good point," said Parvati. "Let's all stay positive."

"Easier said then done," murmured Michael.

* * *

Ginny swung her feet back and forth lazily and sighed. It was a week until Halloween; that was a big day for You-Know-Who. No, it was a big day for Lord Voldemort. She had to call him by his name. Harry, Ron, and Hermione did. It was a big day for Harry, too, in the most awful of ways. She couldn't even imagine something happening to her family like it had to his. Or at least, she hadn't been able to. Now she worried about it all the time. She listened in desperation to the news, read the Prophet, now she paid attention to Potterwatch. And every time, she felt sick to her stomach, as she prayed that nobody in her family would be hurt. She knew Ron was probably okay, because they would know if Harry and his friends had been caught. And she heard Fred and sometimes George on Potterwatch, so they were alive, at least. Bill and Fleur were pretty safely secured in their house, and they sent her letters every now and then; Mum and Dad sent her at least two letters a week. Charlie had only written twice all year, but his job of recruiting international wizards in Romania kept him out of direct harm. And she didn't really care about Percy, but considering he was on the Ministry's side, he definitely wasn't going to be harmed by them. None of that knowledge stopped her from waking up almost every night cold and sweating, having just had a vision of the horrific death of someone in her family. Or of Harry. Or Hermione, who she considered family, too. This war had to end. It had to. But maybe she didn't want it to end too soon; if it ended now, it would probably be with Lord Voldemort victorious, which was obviously the last thing that anybody wanted. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to finish their quest first. Perhaps it was foolish and childish, but Ginny had the ridiculous notion that once they had finished whatever their task was, they would tell her. They probably wouldn't, of course. They'd rush straight up to him and kill him. But honestly, that was okay, too. As long as it ended. And everyone was safe. But the creeping, dreadful feeling was ever-present in the back of her mind. After all, there were eight Weasleys involved in this war. Nine if Percy ever came back to sanity. What were the odds that all of them would survive it? She knew she couldn't let herself think like that, that these thoughts were nothing more than destructive to her mental health and to her functionality, but she couldn't help it. It seemed so ridiculous, so insane, for her to be at school, studying, when people were out there fighting, and dying. When her family was out there fighting. She had always hated being the youngest, but never more so than in this moment. All she wanted was to help her family. And all she could do about it was... nothing.


	8. The Resistance

As the oppressive regime continued well into November, Ginny felt her resolve begin to weaken. There was, of course, the physical pain that the Carrows subjected resistors to, but she had almost grown used to that. It was the mental stress that she was finding incredibly difficult to deal with. The knowledge that Unforgivable curses were being used on people in detention, that Voldemort controlled the Ministry and the school, that her family was in danger, was driving her insane. Luna remained optimistic, at least outwardly, but even she was was affected by what was happening. People had started reading the Quibbler more, and commending her for what her father wrote, but they had to do it carefully because if the Carrows caught anybody with a copy of the Quibbler, they would give them detention. People who had them were liable to be teased by Malfoy and his cronies, who would also be likely to turn them in. But it and Potterwatch were the only reliable news sources these days. The Prophet certainly wasn't going to say anything. It _might_ report a death, if they needed to put a spin on it. But besides that it was only fluff pieces that pretended they weren't under an evil dictator. Ginny found herself thinking about the stories her parents had told about the first time Voldemort had been active. They had felt hopeless then, like their world was spiraling out of their control. But they had ultimately been freed. By Harry. And now they had to put their faith in him again. Ginny didn't know the specifics of the prophecy, but she understood enough to know that it would all come down to him. The one she wanted to spend the rest of her life with (however long that may be), and the entire world rested on his shoulders. She trusted him, of course. But he must be under a great deal of pressure.

One of the effects of the regime was that Neville had grown into his position as a leader quite well. There were secret meetings every week, and they were learning spells, but they were also learning how to resist the effects of the Cruciatus Curse, since that was now necessary. Neville was becoming a very good teacher, and people were listening to him. They had gained a few new members, mostly younger Gryffindors that Neville had convinced to join the cause. Even those who were not actually in Dumbledore's Army were finding ways to stand up to the regime, and that included the teachers. Most of them had stopped giving students detention, because all detentions were presided over by the Carrows. These bits of resistance gave Ginny hope. But this hope wasn't enough to drown out the worry she felt. She longed for a letter from Harry, Ron, or Hermione, saying that they were okay. She knew that she would probably know if they were captured or killed-after all, the Prophet would definitely make a big deal out of that. But knowing that didn't stop her from biting her fingernails and worrying. And what about Fred and George? If they somehow found out about Potterwatch, they could track it back to them and hurt them, not to mention many other fighters who were involved. Remus was on the show; Ginny was glad to know he was alright, and hoped that it meant Tonks was alright, as well. Her parents had informed her that Tonks was pregnant, which was incredible news, one of the few bits of good news she had heard. It might be her parents that she worried about the most; they were all alone in the house, and the Death Eaters knew exactly where it was. Christmas, and going home to her parents, could not come soon enough.

As she sat in the common room on a Saturday morning-she had no energy or will to go outside anymore-a first-year girl walked up to her. "Hi. Are you Ginny Weasley?"

She looked at the girl. "Yes, I am."

"Are the things people say about you true?"

"What things? That I was Harry Potter's girlfriend?"

The girl shook her head. "No. I didn't know that. They say you're part of a secret resistance group that's helping to bring down the Death Eaters, and that you stand up to the Carrows even though they've given you two detentions a week."

"Oh. Yes, that's true," Ginny replied. Despite everything, she couldn't help but smile a little bit. She had been 'Harry Potter's girlfriend' since last year. Everybody came up to her asking if she knew where Harry was, despite her having said repeatedly that she didn't. But this girl had heard stories about her that had nothing to do with Harry. She wasn't 'Harry Potter's girlfriend' now, and she wasn't 'Ginny Weasley, Quidditch star,' or 'Ginny Weasley, popular girl' anymore, either. She was 'Ginny Weasley, member of the resistance.' And that was a title she could be proud of.

"Wow," said the girl. "Can I join your secret resistance group?"

Ginny hesitated. She was only a first-year; that was very young to be joining Dumbledore's Army. But then, this was a war. Nobody was going to be spared from it, no matter how young. "Yeah, sure. It's called Dumbledore's Army and we meet on Thursdays at 6:00 in the Room of Requirement. I can show you how to get there for next week's meeting."

"Thank you," said the girl with a smile. "I want to fight."

"That's good," said Ginny. "Because fighting is necessary."

As the girl walked away, Ginny sighed. Her first year hadn't exactly been a good one, what with being possessed by Voldemort's teenage soul and all that, but she would even take that again over constant uses of the Cruciatus Curse, a world at war, and having to constantly worry for her family's safety. "Please, Harry," she whispered into the empty common room. "End this soon."


	9. Christmastime

**Author's Note: Heh heh... I'm back... I apologize profusely... busy semester... please enjoy this chapter... *sneaks away and hides behind something***

* * *

As they all lined up to get onto the Hogwarts express, Ginny thought about just how terrible this Christmas would be. Bill and Fleur couldn't leave their house, for fear of being caught; they were safe under the Fidelius Charm, and it made no sense to change that. Charlie wasn't able to make it back it back from Romania, Percy was still being a git who hated his family-and might now be working for Voldemort-and Ron was out on the run with Harry and Hermione. The twins were supposedly going to be stopping by on Christmas day, but they couldn't stay very long. They were targets, too. For most of the holiday, it would just be her and her parents. Still, at least they would be together. She wouldn't have to worry about them from afar.

"Hey," said Neville, as he, Luna, and Seamus walked into the compartment.

"Hey."

"Merry Christmas," said Luna.

Ginny snorted. "Merry Christmas."

"I'm excited to go and see Father," said Luna. "I've been worried about him."

"I'm worried about my family too," said Ginny.

"I think my gran could probably handle anything, really," said Neville. "But still, it'll be nice to see her."

"I think me parents are alright," said Seamus. "Far as I know, You-Know-Who hasn't gotten to Ireland yet, an' they live in a Muggle village."

"Everything is changing," said Ginny, looking down at her feet. "Nothing is ever going to be back to the way it was."

"We're going to win, Ginny," said Neville.

"I'm counting on that. But it still won't be back to the way it was. Not for us, anyway. We're soldiers now. Is there any going back from that?"

"Happy thought," said Seamus.

"Well, I'm not happy. I'm scared."

"We're all scared," said Luna.

"I know." She sighed. "Well, hopefully this time next Christmas everything will be great and You-Know-Who will be gone."

"Let's hope," said Neville.

"I'm going to the loo," said Luna, getting up and exiting the carriage.

When she didn't return after a while, Ginny frowned. "Where do you think she went?"

"Maybe she went to sit with someone else," Seamus suggested. "With some Ravenclaws."

Ginny frowned. "Maybe."

* * *

"Ginny!" her mother shouted as soon as she stepped off the train. Her parents embraced her in a hug.

"Hey Mum, hey Dad," she said, unable to stop herself from beaming.

"It's so wonderful to see you, dear."

"It's great to see you too."

When they got home, she sat down on the couch in the living room and just looked at her parents as they sat on the one across from her. "So," she finally said. "How have things been here?"

"They've been alright, so far," her father said. "Nobody's really been bothering us. It's been very strange at the Ministry, though. Since the break-in, they've tightened security significantly, and I'm fairly sure they're spying on me, but I can't risk quitting, because then they'll know that I'm on to them."

"Oh god... you're safe, Dad, aren't you?"

"I think I am, yes."

"You'd better be. Nothing can happen. Not to any of the Weasleys."

"We're doing our best, dear," said her mother. "It's a dangerous world."

"I'm well aware of that. Even Hogwarts has been infiltrated by Death Eaters, nowhere is safe anymore."

"You mean Snape has hired others?"

"Is it a surprise? He hired the Carrow siblings; Alecto and Amycus. They teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, which is now Dark Arts, and Muggle Studies, which is now a lesson in how terrible Muggles are. And..." Ginny bit her lip. "For detention, they use the Cruciatus Curse on students."

"They what?!" her mother exclaimed, face turning bright red. "That wasn't in your letters!"

"Nothing is in the letters, Mum, they could be intercepted!"

"Did they use the Cruciatus Curse on you?" her father asked.

Ginny swallowed; she feared their reaction. "Yes. Twice a week, on average."

Her parents' faces both turned pale white. Her mother got up, ran over to her, and sat beside her, immediately scanning her with her wand.

"I'm fine, Mum. I've gotten used to it."

"Gotten used to... the Cruciatus Curse?" her father asked feebly.

"We all have. All of Dumbledore's Army. The whole resistance."

"Resistance?" Her mother looked slightly ill.

"What, did you think we would let them get away with this?"

"Be safe, Ginny," her father said.

"I will be as safe as I can be. But I have to fight. Harry and Ron and Hermione are fighting, with their secret mission, and Fred and George are fighting, with Potterwatch, and all of you are fighting in various ways. I'm going to fight, too. To defend everything I know."

There was a long pause.

"Well," said her mother. "Time for dinner."

* * *

On Christmas afternoon, there was a knock on the door.

Ginny ran to open it.

"Miss us?" asked Fred.

She threw her arms around them. "So much."

"So, how are things at the house?" asked George.

"Pretty quiet. How's the radio show going?"

"Ah, so you've heard us," said Fred.

"Course. Dumbledore's Army listens to every broadcast."

"Dumbledore's Army is still going?" asked George.

"We need it now more than ever."

"You leading, then, little sis?" Fred asked.

"No. Neville is, and he's doing a great job."

"We're sure he is."

"Fred! George!" their mother exclaimed, running down the stairs and engulfing her sons in a hug.

"Oi! Mum! You're suffocating us."

"Sorry, sorry. It's just so good to see you... safe..."

"We can handle ourselves, Mum."

"Yeah, we'll be fine."

"Good to see you boys!" said Dad, coming down the stairs.

"And you, Dad. How's the Ministry?"

"Full of Death Eaters."

"Hogwarts too," said Ginny. "And the rest of the world."

"Well, not for long," said Fred.

"Everything'll be fine," said George.

"You seem awfully sure."

"What's the alternative?"

They settled down for Christmas dinner, Ginny looking around at all the empty spots on the table, then gazing out the window, wondering where all of her family and friends were now.


	10. Missing Friends

When she got back on the train after the Christmas holidays, Ginny felt that something was off. "Where's Luna?" she asked when she saw Neville.

He shrugged. "Haven't seen her."

"I knew it," said Ginny. "When she went missing off the Hogwarts express, that wasn't her going to sit with somebody else. Something's happened. Something bad."

"You don't think they... killed her?"

Ginny swallowed hard. "I don't know. She's a pureblood."

"True. But the things her dad was saying in the Quibbler..."

"Maybe they took her," said Ginny. "So he'd stop writing things they didn't like."

"Maybe," said Neville. "Then where would they take her?"

Ginny swallowed again. "Probably Azkaban."

"Oh god."

She sat down. Luna had been her closest friend this year, after Hermione she was Ginny's closest friend. The thought of her rotting in Azkaban made Ginny feel faint. And it made her blood boil. "Well, then. We have to-I don't know-break her out."

"Ginny, we can't stage an Azkaban jail break."

"Can't we?"

"No! We'll just... keep going with Dumbledore's Army."

"Oh, and what use is that use is that doing, huh?!" She kicked the seat. "We aren't helping end this war at all."

"We tried to steal the Sword of Gryffindor for Harry."

"Key word there being tried. What did we get for it? Detention. What did Harry get for it? Nothing."

"We stand up to the Carrows."

"Sure, but who's that helping?"

"The younger students. Maybe."

She snorted. "Face it, Neville. We're basically sitting ducks here and we aren't helping end this thing, the only people really ending it are Harry, Ron, and Hermione."

"Is there any way to get into contact with them?"

Ginny shook her head. "The Ministry could trace any method we used."

"Well, we've got to be able to do something!"

"You're the leader, Neville. What do we do?"

Neville sat down across from her. "I haven't the faintest clue."

* * *

Sitting in Charms class, with a partner she didn't know, Ginny couldn't help but fume silently to herself. Everything was terrible. One of her best friends was trapped in a prison, her family was in constant danger, her boyfriend was the Chosen One and the only person who could end all of this, and her school was being ruined. So was her country.

That evening, she reported for her first detention of the new term. A young first-year boy was standing in the room when she arrived. She frowned.

Alecto Carrow stood at the front of the room. "Alright. Ginevra Weasley. This young boy was caught stealing a book from the library. You know the punishment he will receive?"

Ginny bit her lip to avoid yelling. "Yes."

"Good. Administer it."

Her stomach dropped. "What?"

"You heard me."

"You want me to perform the Cruciatus Curse on an eleven-year-old boy?"

"That is correct."

"Absolutely not!"

Alecto curled her lip. "Do you stand by that?"

"Yes! He doesn't deserve that punishment."

Alecto nodded and flipped her wand. Ginny felt a searing hot pain on her arm, and looked down to realize she was bleeding profusely from it. "What the-"

"Rules are rules, Ms. Weasley. Go, then."

When she found Neville, she explained what had happened.

He nodded. "They already did it to me three times."

"They did it to him after I left, I'm sure. Just for stealing a book! They're going around and finding people because they want to use that curse. Because they like it. They're sick."

"Of course they are."

"Are we having a meeting this weekend?"

He nodded.

* * *

"So," said Sally, a young second year, when they convened for their meeting. "What're we doing?"

"The same we've been doing," said Neville.

"It's only my third meeting."

"We fight," said Ginny.

Neville nodded. "And we learn spells. To defend ourselves."

"Is there a spell to defend against the Cruciatus Curse?" asked Max, a first year.

Neville shook his head. "There isn't." He was silent for a moment; Ginny suspected that he was thinking about his parents. "But we can learn other spells. I think today, we should work on conjuring Patronuses. Very useful, Patronuses."

"Aren't they really, really hard?" asked Sally.

"They are," said Ginny. "But Harry can do it."

"Sure, but he's Harry Potter," said Max. "He's the Chosen One."

"He taught me how to do it," said Ginny. "I'm not the Chosen One. You can learn anything, if you work hard enough at it."

"You're kind of starting to sound like Hermione," Neville said with a chuckle.

Ginny smiled, but internally she thought about how she wished Hermione were here. And she wished Luna were here. And Harry. And Ron. And all of her other siblings, even if they had already graduated. Even Percy, maybe. And her parents. She wished she weren't so alone.

During the meeting, Sally and Max both managed to conjure silvery wisps, and a first year girl summoned a fish Patronus. Looking at them, Ginny thought maybe there was hope to win this fight. Even if they were so alone. But this was only the battle, not the war.

After the meeting ended, Ginny went back to Gryffindor tower and immediately headed up to go to sleep, parting ways with Lavender and Parvati as they reached the top of the girls' tower and heading into her room, where most of her dormmates were already asleep. People didn't stay up as late now that the Carrows were patrolling the school at night looking for people to punish. Ginny couldn't sleep, so she pulled out a piece of parchment and started writing a letter. Not to her parents or Bill or Charlie, though, or even to the twins. She wrote a letter to Harry. A letter she wished she could send.


	11. Some News

About a month into the new term, Ginny walked out of Transfiguration class and directly into Alecto Carrow.

"Weasley," she snarled. "What are you doing here?"

"Leaving my class."

"Crucio."

Ginny winced as the curse hit her; it wasn't a strong one, and she had built up a tolerance over the months.

"Get out of my sight."

"Gladly."

She turned and walked away from Alecto, heading back to the common room. She tried to find Neville so they could discuss the week's DA meeting, but he was nowhere to be found. She saw a first year member of the DA sitting on one of the chairs. "Have you seen Neville?"

She shook her head. "Not all day, actually."

"Hmm," said Ginny. "That's odd. I haven't seen him either."

She walked to the library; Neville wasn't there, but she saw Seamus. He had a bruise on his face, presumably from one of the Carrows. "Hey, Seamus," she said. "Have you seen Neville?"

He shook his head. "And I'm not sure we will."

Ginny frowned. "What do you mean?"

He pulled out a copy of the day's _Daily Prophet_ and pointed to a line in one of the articles.

Ginny sat down and read: _Augusta Longbottom, a known blood traitor who has been watched for potential treasonous activities, today attacked the people assigned to guard her and escaped their attempt to capture her. She is on the run and considered a wanted person. Anybody with information on her whereabouts should inform the Ministry._

"Wow," she said. "Neville's gran is amazing, fighting off Death Eaters like that."

"Yeah," said Seamus. "But it's probably best for Neville if he stays out of the Carrows' sight for the time being."

"That's fair," Ginny agreed.

"Have you read today's Prophet yet?"

Ginny shook her head. "My copy hasn't arrived. Probably got intercepted." Only about half of the Daily Prophets she had ordered had actually made it to her; the Death Eaters were no doubt watching her mail, probably waiting for some kind of communication from Harry, as if he would be stupid enough to send her a message. If only Hedwig were still around, she would be able to send messages secretly... Ginny knew that the snowy owl's death had affected Harry much more than he had let on; she had meant a lot to him, having been his companion since he had entered the magical world.

Seamus broke her out of her thoughts. "Your brother was mentioned."

"What?! Which one?!" She leapt out of the chair.

"Percy."

"Oh. Okay." She sat back down and took a deep breath; if it was Percy, he probably wasn't in any danger, Ministry git that he was. She didn't believe that he was truly on Voldemort's side; he was a prick, but not an evil one. But he would be pretending to be, or at least pretending to do what he was told, if he hadn't been placed under the Imperius Curse. Her father was still going to work; it would draw too much suspicion if he didn't. "What... er... what did it say?"

"Just that he was quoted as saying that the Ministry is proceeding with the trials of Muggleborns."

"Oh." She grimaced. "He's not involved with them, is he?"

"Didn't say," he said, sounding apologetic.

"Anyway, don't scare me like that, just saying my brother was mentioned. That could mean Ron, dead, or the twins caught for Potterwatch, or-well, anything."

"Sorry."

She sighed. "It's the just the state of being now, I guess. Constantly expecting someone to turn up dead." She looked away from the paper. "How's your family?"

He shrugged. "I think they're alright. I mean, me dad's a Muggle, but he's not 'stealing magic' as they call it, so they're content to just treat him like a worm. And mum is a witch by birth. Nobody in me family's ever been known to fight against You-Know-Who." He sighed. "I'm more worried about Dean, to be honest. He went on the run and nobody's heard from him."

"I know the feeling," Ginny said, glancing at the paper again. "Knowing that no news is technically good news but wanting news anyway... drives you mad."

"Yeah," he said.

"Well, see you later, Seamus."

"See you."

She went to the Room of Requirement, figuring it was the most likely place where she would find Neville. Indeed, he was in the DA training room, sitting on one of the cushioned chairs. He looked up when she entered. "Oh. Hey, Ginny."

"Hey. I was going to ask you about the meeting this weekend, but then I read about your grandmother in the _Daily Prophet_."

"Oh, yeah. She's amazing, isn't she?"

"Absolutely," said Ginny. "So, you're staying out of the Carrows' way?"

"Figured it was best," said Neville. "I'll just stay here for a bit."

She nodded, then sat down in the chair near him. "Are you alright?"

He snorted. "That's a stupid question."

"I know."

There was a pause. "I'm worried about my gran," he said. "I mean, she's brilliant, fighting off Death Eaters like that. But she's getting on in years, and they're really after her now, and... she's kind of the only family I've got left."

Ginny had no idea what to say to that; she didn't want to say she thought his grandmother would be alright, because she honestly had no idea. And she couldn't say she really understood what he was feeling, because she didn't. She had a huge family. That was part of what worried her. "I hope she shows the Death Eaters who's boss," she finally settled on.

Neville chuckled. "I imagine she will." He sighed. "I wonder what my parents would think about all of this."

"They'd be fighting,'' said Ginny. "And they'd be proud of you for doing the same."

"That's what Gran said after the fight in the Department of Mysteries," said Neville. "But I think they'd rather that I was safe and that I didn't have to fight."

"Every parent would prefer that," said Ginny. "But they'd also be proud you're doing the right thing. Just like you were by coming to the Department of Mysteries." She chuckled humorlessly. "That seems like ages ago now."

"Our first fight," said Neville.

"Far from our last."

"Is all this ever going to be over?"

"We can only hope."


	12. Courage and Desperation

As February gave way to March, Ginny had to fight harder and harder to avoid giving way to hopelessness. There had still been no word from Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and even her communications with the rest of her family had gotten fewer and farther between. She knew they were probably safe until there was something in the _Prophet_ , but she didn't like having to rely on silence, and she was starting to go mad from it. She knew it was wildly optimistic, but she hoped this war would be over by the end of this school year. She couldn't bear the thought of another year of Hogwarts being so thoroughly degraded. Then again, better the war go on longer than be lost. She wasn't even sure what "losing" would mean, exactly. Winning was obvious: Voldemort gone, the Ministry and Hogwarts and society back to how they had been before they returned. But what exactly was losing? How could it get worse? If they were staging a rebellion against a force that had invaded all they knew, had Voldemort and his supporters actually already won? Was this just their new society now? She shook her head to get rid of such thoughts. Harry was still around. Harry would have a way to defeat Voldemort, the prophecy she wasn't supposed to know about said so. But then, of course, she did know what losing was, and the thought chilled her to her very core. "Be careful, Harry," she whispered to the empty common room.

Getting up and dragging herself down to the Great Hall for dinner, she thought with a sigh about her detention tonight. She had already received several cuts and bruises from the Carrows for refusing to do the Cruciatus Curse on younger students, and they were probably going to step up their game. At least, she reminded herself, there were only a few days until the Easter holidays, a welcome month-long respite from the horrors the school was enduring. After they got back in April, there were only two more months until the summer holidays, and then... what? When did this end? Never, of course, it never ended, not until the war was over. As she took a seat at the table next to Lavender, she resisted the urge to kick the table leg.

"How are you doing? Lavender asked with a smile.

Ginny smiled back awkwardly; she still felt strange around Lavender after all the snogging she and Ron had done last year. "As well as usual."

"So not very well then?"

"No, not so much. Just the general question of 'Are my family and friends still alive?' and no answer."

"I know the feeling," Lavender said with a nod. "But at least it's Easter soon."

"At least."

Hannah walked up to their table. "Hey, have you two seen Neville?"

"Might be in the DA meeting spot," Lavender replied.

"If not there, you could check the library," Ginny added.

"Thank you!" Hannah replied, darting off.

"Are Neville and Hannah dating?" Ginny asked Lavender.

The older girl rolled her eyes. "Unfortunately, neither of them seem to have realized that they should be yet. It's getting infuriating."

"What's infuriating?" Parvati asked, walking up to them.

"Neville and Hannah," Lavender said, and Parvati nodded her understanding.

"Well, there is a war on," said Ginny. "Maybe not the best time for romance." Her thoughts drifted back to her breakup with Harry in June; that was pretty much what he had said when he had told her they had to put their relationship on hold. And she did think it was on hold, that maybe once this was all over they would get back together. But Harry's mind was so firmly set on defeating Voldemort that she wasn't sure he had ever even considered after.

"When's the better time?" asked Lavender, pulling her from her thoughts. "We could all be dead soon."

"Oh, that's a pleasant thought," said Parvati.

"Maybe it'll all be over soon," said Ginny. Maybe being outwardly hopeful would make her inwardly more hopeful.

"Guess that all depends on your boyfriend, doesn't it?" Parvati said. "Whether or not he does... whatever it is he needs to do."

"Guess it does," Ginny agreed. "It would really be nice if he would have told me what that was."

"Whatever it is, I'm sure he'll manage it," said Lavender.

"He's got Hermione with him, and she's very smart," said Parvati.

"And Ron," Lavender said, "Who's very good at-"

"Please don't finish that," Ginny cut in.

"I was going to say chess."

Ginny felt her cheeks turning pink. "Well, yes. Hopefully Harry, Ron, and Hermione can finish their mission."

"Your whole family's on the front lines of this war, aren't they?" said Parvati.

Ginny sighed and nodded. "Pretty much. Except Percy the git. And Charlie's in Romania." She looked at Lavender and Parvati. "Either of you have family who are on the watch-list?"

"My aunt is Muggleborn," said Lavender. "She and my uncle went into hiding a few months ago, and as far as I know they haven't been put on trial yet."

"That's good," Ginny said.

"Yeah. But how much longer can it last?"

"Until Harry fulfills his role, hopefully."

"Hopefully."

* * *

Reporting for her detention that night, Ginny smiled at the thought that this might be her last one before the holidays. She just had to stay out of trouble for four days...

The first year in Amycus Carrow's office, shaking and looking terrified, was Max, the first year in the DA who had finally managed to conjure a Patronus at their last meeting. Ginny felt like throwing up again.

"You know what you're supposed to do," Carrow said.

"Yes, and you know I'm not doing it."

He shrugged. "So be it." He pointed the wand at Max. "Crucio!"

Ginny's instincts kicked in before her conscious thought did; as soon as he pointed the wand, she dove in front of Max, taking the Cruciatus Curse in his place. Despite the pain coursing through her body, she steadied herself and stood in front of the boy.

"Are you really going to make this more difficult than it needs to be?"

"It doesn't need to be difficult at all, just let him go."

"Crucio!" She felt the pain again.

"Stop it," said Max quietly. "I can take it."

"Max-"

"You do it all the time, Ginny. Besides, I hurt myself all the time, I'm super accident prone. I can take it. And you shouldn't have to take it for me."

She looked into the young boy's eyes, brave and defiant despite the clear fear coursing through him. "You shouldn't have to take it either."

"But when the world is unfair, we have to stand up, not back down."

"Is that a quote from somewhere?"

"From my mother," Max said. "She's in Azkaban now. They put her in there just because her parents aren't magic."

Ginny swallowed.

"If I may interject," Amycus Carrow said. "I really don't care about any of this. Not the boy's thief mother and certainly not this little chat. You don't actually have a choice. Miss Weasley, you are to use the Cruciatus Curse on this boy here, and if you do not, then we will punish you as well."

"I know that," said Ginny. "And you know that I won't do it."

"Yes." He raised his wand again.

* * *

As the students left Thursday night's DA meeting, Ginny stopped Max. "Hey, are you doing alright?"

"Ginny, you've been asking me that for days."

"I know. Just... are you?"

"I'm fine. The curse has long since worn off."

"It was really brave, what you did."

He smiled faintly. "It's what my mother would want."

"They'll let her out of Azkaban once this is all over."

Max looked at the ground. "My dad says nobody comes back from Azkaban the same."

"Your mother sounds strong, though."

"She is." He looked back up at her. "Have a good holiday, Ginny."

"You too."

He left, and then it was just Neville and Ginny left in the room. "I still think you would have made a better leader," said Neville. "You basically are leader."

"Neville, you've got to believe in yourself more," Ginny said. "You're more capable than you think."

He blushed a deep red. "You're just saying that to be nice."

"Oh come on, Neville, I don't do anything to be nice."

"You turned down going to the Yule Ball with Harry because you had already said yes to me. Don't let anybody tell you you aren't nice."

Ginny chuckled faintly. "So. Some of them can do Patronuses, we've covered the Disarming Charm, the Stunning Spell, the Shield Charm, the Impediment Jinx, the Bat-Bogey Hex... anything else you think it's particularly important to go over?"

"I don't know," said Neville. "I don't know what's coming, how can I know how to fight it?"

Ginny sighed. "Well, we can talk about it after the Easter holidays. Have a good holiday."

"You too."

The next day, Ginny boarded the Hogwarts Express, heading home for the holidays.


	13. Lying In Darkness

The Easter holidays began pretty dull. Fred and George came by to visit once, and letters kept coming from Bill and Fleur and from Charlie. Ginny bided her time until she would go back to Hogwarts and bide her time there until she was back home. What was she even doing? Until this was was over and Voldemort was defeated, what was anyone doing?

"Alright, ladies, off to work," her father said one day.

"Don't go, Dad," she said. "Please. Don't walk back into the villain's lair again. Every time you do you may not come back."

"And if I don't, Ginny? If I put an even bigger target on our backs than there already is?"

"How can you stand it? Going there every day, seeing what the Death Eaters have done to the place?"

He was silent for a moment. "I can't, really. I just have to move along. Ignore it all while I'm there, not make a fuss. Not let any of you be in danger."

"How?" She looked into her father's eyes and realized there was something missing, the spark that he had always possessed, that had made her childhood so magical.

"This isn't the first war I've lived through, Ginny," her father replied. "I had hoped you'd never have to know the feeling."

Her mother, who had been silent until this point, said, "We've all done it before, dear. Although, even at the worst of the war back then, the Ministry had never fallen."

"Are we going to win?" Ginny asked.

"I don't know," her mother replied. "We have to believe that we will. We have to believe that sacrifices were not in vain."

"And Harry, and Ron, and Hermione, it's up to them," said Ginny.

At the mention of Ron's name, her mother turned away. "I told Ron not to go."

"Like he'd listen. I'd have gone if I'd had the chance."

"Do you hear yourself? We've told you how awful war is, and you still say you want to be on the front lines?"

"You think I don't have people I want to protect, Mum? Our family?"

"It's our job to protect you," her father said. "Not the other way around."

"And what about Harry?"

"He's ours too," her mother said firmly.

"Lovely chat though this has been," said her father, "I really must be off to work now."

As she watched her father walk out the door, Ginny felt tears springing to her eyes. "I just want it to be over."

Her mother sat beside her, and the familiar scent of her baking filled Ginny with warmth. "We all do, dear."

* * *

As she tuned into Potterwatch, Ginny thought about how she had to get access to an illegal radio broadcast just to hear her brothers' voices. This was what Voldemort had done to their family. She wanted him dead more than she wanted anything else in the world.

Well, almost anything. She wanted her family alive, more.

"Greetings to all of our listeners," the broadcast began. "We start today's broadcast with some sad news. We regret to inform you that the remains of Bathilda Bagshot have been discovered in Godric's Hollow."

Her mother gasped. "Bathilda Bagshot... never would have thought... but why?"

"The evidence is that despite sightings of her out walking in Godric's Hollow, Bathilda died several months ago. The Order of the Phoenix informs us that her body showed unmistakable signs of injury inflicted by Dark Magic."

She looked at her father, who had unmistakable disgust on his face. "What did those foul people do to her? Months, they say?"

"There was also evidence of a recent battle in her home, and the building next door."

"A battle in Godric's Hollow." Ginny looked at her parents. "You don't think... Harry... went to visit his parents?"

"It wouldn't be very wise," said her mother. "But perhaps he did, the poor dear."

"And, has the Wizarding Wireless Network News reported any of this? No."

"The Wizarding Wireless "No News" Network."

Ginny scoffed. "Some reliable source of information they are."

"State propaganda machine," her father replied.

"Sadly, these aren't the only deaths that the News Network and Daily Prophet didn't think important enough to mention." Ginny felt her heart rate rise.

"It is with great regret that we inform our listeners of the murder of Ted Tonks and Dirk Cresswell. A goblin by the name of Gornuk was also killed."

"No!" said her father, his voice more angered than Ginny thought she might have ever heard.

"Ted Tonks," her mother said, tears springing to her eyes. "Oh, I must get in touch with Andromeda and Nymphadora..."

Ginny felt her blood chill. Tonks was a good friend of hers, and her father...

The report wasn't done. "It is believed that Muggle-born Dean Thomas and a second goblin, both believed to be travelling with Tonks, Cresswell, and Gornuk, may have escaped."

Ginny felt sick to her stomach. Dean. Her ex-boyfriend. Fight as they may have, a part of her still cared for him, and regardless, the thought that someone she had... had just escaped being murdered...

"If Dean is listening, your parents and sisters are pretty desperate for news." His poor family. They were Muggles, of course they were desperate for news. "We have to go off the air now, but as we do, we ask you to take a moment's silence, in memory of those who have fallen."

The broadcast shut off, and Ginny ran to the bathroom, vomiting in the toilet.

"Ginny, dear, are you alright?" her mother asked.

"What kind of question is that? My ex-boyfriend just escaped murder and is on the run! And Tonks's dad..."

Her father placed his hand on her shoulder. "I fear it will get worse."

"That's not helping, Dad!"

"I just want you to be prepared for what might happen."

* * *

Ginny stared at the headline before her with nothing less than pure horror.

HARRY POTTER AND FRIENDS CAPTURED AT MALFOY MANOR

"What do we do?" she asked, her voice shaking as the realization of what was happening hit her.

"The only thing we can do," her mother replied. "We hide."


	14. In Hiding

Ginny read over the article, her heart racing at a million kilometers a minute. "This can't be happening."

"But it is," said her father. His face was pale, set with determination. "I'm going outside to strength the wards on the house. Molly, contact Bill and Fleur, and the twins, in case they don't know what's going on. Charlie's probably alright, but it couldn't hurt to contact him, too."

"But is Ron alright?" Ginny asked. "And Harry and Hermione?"

"We don't know," her mother replied. Her voice was shaking as she glanced at the clock on the wall. Every hand was still at "mortal peril." But they were all still there. "We just have to avoid the Death Eaters and hope they're doing the same." She looked at her daughter with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Ginny. We tried to protect you from this."

"Don't apologize," she said. "This isn't anybody's fault but Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters."

She read over the article again. At least they had escaped. But to where? Why hadn't they come here? They were still inaccessible to her, and to everybody else fighting this war. They had been at Malfoy Manor. The thought of Draco Malfoy holding them captive made her blood boil with anger. And the thought of _him_ , of all people, seeing them when she could not made her feel on the verge of tears.

"They'll have figured out we lied about Ron," her mother was saying. "So we're all going to be wanted now. That means no leaving the house under any circumstances. Ginny, you can't go back to school after the holidays end."

Ginny nodded a vague understanding of her mother's words. She wouldn't miss the Carrows or Snape or any of it, but she didn't like that the only semi-useful thing she had been doing, leading the resistance, she could now no longer do. At least she would be home, spending time with her family. Spending time doing nothing. The three of them would be cooped up in this house with nobody else to talk to and nothing to do. Nobody could visit. The twins couldn't stop by anymore. They probably couldn't even get mail. They were alone. And in constant, ever-present danger, even more so than before. She was angry, and she was frustrated, and she was very. very frightened. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had been caught once now. Would they be caught again?

* * *

The next few weeks were agonizing. Mum spent most of the day cooking and cleaning frantically, and Ginny wanted to tell her that she couldn't make their problems go away just by busying herself, but she wasn't going to question anything her mother had to do to avoid going insane, especially given that she was frequently practicing hexes on inanimate objects and kicking things. She also had a box now full of letters to Harry, Ron, Hermione, the twins, Bill, Charlie, and, though she hated to admit it, there was one addressed to Percy, too. Just in case, she figured. In case she never saw them again. They had no way of knowing how long this quarantine would last. If Voldemort wasn't removed from power, they wouldn't be safe. They had to count on destroying him, had to count on Harry, had to count on the plan Dumbledore had laid out for him. She had to trust Albus Dumbledore. She hadn't interacted with him much; he had always been a commanding and inaccessible leader to her. But he had known what he was doing. She had heard the things Rita Skeeter had said about him, but she didn't really believe anything that hag wrote. So she had to have faith in his plan, and she had to have faith in Harry to execute it. And in her brother. And Hermione. She would be of age in August; maybe then she could find a way to join them on whatever their quest was. She couldn't go back to Hogwarts, after all. Would she spend the rest of her life either in hiding or on the run? Voldemort had to die eventually, didn't he? Or did he? Could he be immortal. He had survived the backfiring curse in Godric's Hollow, after all...

She shook her head. Better not to think about that. She should go see what Dad was doing. He had been maintaining some communications with the Order, doing whatever he could do without drawing attention to them, which was very little. Without his work at the Ministry, Ginny knew he was as afflicted with cabin fever as she was. She went out to the shed, where he was tinkering with Muggle things. "Hey, Dad."

He looked up. "Hello, Ginny. Can you pass me that screwdriver?"

She did as he requested. "Do you happen to know what day it is? I've lost track."

He nodded understandingly. "Don't like being stuck here much?"

"I don't like not doing anything. I want to help, Dad. At least at Hogwarts I was doing _something_. Even if it wasn't much. Now... this is indefinite. We could be stuck here for the rest of our lives, which could be one more day, and..." she trailed off, realizing how agitated her words had become.

"It will end, Ginny."

"Can you promise that?"

He looked long and hard at her. "No." He sighed. "I wish I could."

"I know, Dad." She sat down on an overturned bucket. "Was it like this last time?"

He put down his work. "Pretty much. We weren't on house arrest, but much of the feeling was the same. Your mother was frantic. As she had the right to be. After your uncles died... well, it really seemed the horrors would never end. But just weeks later, the war did end."

"So what're you saying? Wait for Harry Potter to save us?"

"Hope that something will happen. As for Harry... he's too young to be doing this."

"Well, prophecies and all that," said Ginny. She sighed. "Thanks, Dad."

* * *

One day, Ginny looked up to see her mother enter her room. She was smiling widely, which was strange to see nowadays. "Mum?"

"I've gotten a message from Nymphadora Tonks," her mother said. "She had the baby!"

"Oh, cool!" Ginny found herself smiling, too; it almost felt foreign. "Boy or girl?"

"It's a boy. Edward Remus Lupin. Harry's the godfather," she added.

"Oh, good," said Ginny.

"Apparently Remus went to go tell him."

"Wait. They know where Harry is?"

Her mother pursed her lips. "Yes, well, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are at Shell Cottage."

"What?"

"They've been there since escaping Malfoy Manor."

"Did you know?"

"Not the whole time. Found out a couple days ago."

"So they're safe."

"For now."

Ginny felt a huge weight lift off her chest.

But then everything went back to the way it had been.

* * *

A couple weeks later, Ginny was sitting in her room and reading a book when she felt a burning sensation in her pocket. Heart racing, she pulled out the Dumbledore's Army galleon that she kept on her at all times. She read the words Neville had sent her, her heart leaping nearly out of her chest:

 _Harry at school._

He had kept his promise. And Harry had returned, presumably with Ron and Hermione in tow. Which, of course, could mean only one thing. A fight was coming. Harry was going to make his final stand. And she was going to be there.

She just had to find a way out of the house. Should she tell her parents? Definitely not, they wouldn't let her go... but they would want to be involved with the fight, too, she knew. Should she leave them a note? Or should she trust that the Order would get word? Probably the latter.

She went out to the yard; Dad was in the shed, and she carefully slipped out the back door. She couldn't apparate, but she needed to find a way into Hogsmeade. She knew the twins could apparate, but London was a ways away, and there were no means of transportation she could think of that wouldn't get her caught.

Luckily, she didn't need to figure it out; the twins and their friend Lee Jordan were walking towards her now. "Thought you might be out here," said George.

"Ready for a fight?" Fred asked.

Ginny nodded. "Let's go."


	15. The Battle of Hogwarts

Ginny's heart was racing as she, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan apparated into the Hog's Head. They headed upstairs, where the bartender greeted them. Someone else was in the room, drinking a cup of tea. "Hello," said Cho Chang with a faint smile.

Ginny forced herself to smile back. Cho still had feelings for Harry, she was fairly certain of it. And beside that, she wasn't really in the mood to be smiling, given that there was about to be a battle. But they were on the same side. She'd have to put her personal feelings aside.

"Got the coin, too, then?" Lee asked.

She nodded. "Here to help."

"We'll need it," said Fred.

"Have any details?" Ginny asked.

George shook his head. "But if Harry's here-"

"It's got to be for something big," she agreed.

"Well, get on then," said the bartender. "I'd like to get to sleep, if people will stop using my pub as a through-way."

Ginny nodded. "Let's get on with it."

They all entered the tunnel behind the portrait, making their way through it and into the Room of Requirement. When she stepped out of the hole, they were there. Harry, Ron, and Hermione. For the first time all year. She smiled widely at Harry, hoping nobody would notice the rapid beating of her heart.

But as Harry explained that they weren't there to fight, that they just had to do something quickly and get out, she felt her heart sinking. So there wasn't going to be a battle? It wasn't going to end? They were going to run off again?

She was lost in her own thoughts until Luna piped up about Ravenclaw's diadem. Ginny didn't quite understand why Harry would want it, but if it would help than they would find it. Then Cho offered to help, and for a moment her professionalism dropped. "No, Luna will take Harry," she said quickly. "Won't you, Luna?" She wasn't exactly proud of it, but she felt a fierce protectiveness for the man she still knew she loved.

As Harry and Luna left, Neville said, "Well, what do we do now?"

"We have to call for help," said Fred. "Don't care what Harry says, all of Dumbledore's Army should be here. If he gets sighted in the castle..."

So they spent the next few minutes contacting every member of Dumbledore's Army, who filtered in one by one.

When Angelina Johnson entered, she said, "I've contacted Oliver Wood, he's coming to help."

"Good," said Lee. "We'll need all the help we can get."

"Which is why I contacted Bill," said George. "He's going to let the Order know."

Ginny's heart dropped slightly. "So they're all coming to fight?"

"It'll be alright, Ginny," said Fred. But she wasn't so sure.

They waited for what seemed like forever before Harry and Luna returned. By that point, nearly the entire Order was there. When Harry informed them they were fighting, there was an uproar. But as Ginny ran to join the group, her mother grabbed her arm. "Not a chance, young lady."

"Mum!"

Harry came over, and as she argued with her mother, she pleaded for his help. When he shook his head, she felt the sting of betrayal, and was distracted from her fury only by Percy coming through the portrait hole.

There was dead silence in the room for a moment, and Fleur asking about Teddy didn't help. Ginny stared at her brother. For three years, he had stayed away from them, siding with the Ministry. But here he was, evidently come back around.

"I was a fool!" he shouted, and Ginny couldn't help but agree. But here he was, admitting his mistakes. As her parents hugged him, she felt tears springing to her eyes. Here they were, reconciled once more, all together except Charlie, who was on his way. But they were all about to enter a major battle together. What were the odds they all made it out?

She tried to force those thoughts out. As they walked up to the castle, she tried to sneak away, but was caught. When Lupin came up with his compromise, and her father agreed, she knew it was all she was going to get. Then she and Harry were alone in the room, for the briefest of moments. She informed him that Ron and Hermione had mentioned a bathroom, but as he responded, he put his hand to his scar. "Harry?"

He didn't say anything. "Got to go. See you later, Ginny."

"Is that a promise?"

He didn't reply.

* * *

Waiting in the Room of Requirement was agony. She heard nothing, saw nothing; she might as well not be here. Nobody was coming to inform her of anything. But she heard Voldemort's message, and ice spread through her veins. Half an hour? That was all?

People came through the room in hordes, underage students evacuating through the portrait hole. But when they were gone, Ginny was alone again, still waiting in silence.

When Tonks came stumbling through the hole, her eyes widened. "Aren't you supposed to be with Teddy?"

She nodded. "But I couldn't... I couldn't stand it."

Ginny nodded her understanding.

They stood in silence, not quite sure what to say to each other, for about ten minutes, before Neville's grandmother came through the passageway. "Ah, hello." She waved her wand, and Ginny saw the passageway seal.

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione came back a bit later, Ginny jumped at the chance to leave the room. She didn't care what they were doing, clearly it was important, her parents would understand. Pulling out her wand, she followed Tonks into battle.

A few minutes later, they came out again, as she and Tonks shot hexes. As she watched Tonks run outside to find Lupin, she had a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. Harry, Ron, and Hermione went back into the room, clearly using it for something else, and, the adrenaline the only thing keeping her going, she she ran into the fray.

* * *

Time went by in a blur, shooting hexes and dueling with every masked figure she saw as adrenaline pumped through her veins. As she fought her way down to the entrance hall, she saw Percy nearby. He looked at her, and she realized with dread that he was crying. "Percy?"

He opened his mouth, but couldn't seem to form words.

"Percy, what is it? Who..."

"Fred," he said, choking on the word as he said it.

The world stopped, and she tuned out the sounds of the battle behind her. The room was spinning. She felt her stomach turning, and then became vaguely aware of her brother's arms around her. She tried to stay numb, but she couldn't. She had been fearing this all year... and even stronger tonight. She felt tears streaming down her face, but there would be time for that later. Breaking away from Percy, she gripped her wand harder and blasted the strongest hex she had ever cast at an approaching Death Eater.

"Nice spellwork," said Percy.

"Thanks." She bit her lip. "Who else knows? About..."

"Ron was there when it happened," said Percy. "Harry and Hermione too."

The nauseating feeling intensified. "But... Mum and Dad..."

He shook his head. "Not yet."

She swallowed back her tears, shooting more hexes in every direction. A couple of minutes went by before Voldemort's voice rang through the castle again, telling them they had an hour. An hour for Harry to surrender.

"I'll go and get him," said Percy, still crying.

She nodded blankly, then saw her father entering the entrance hall. She couldn't do this. She couldn't. Ashamed of herself, she ducked away from his line of sight. When Percy returned, a couple minutes later, she felt like throwing up. People were gathering in the entrance hall. Trying to be numb, she followed Percy. Her father had noticed by this point; he had turned pale white. Bill and Fleur had gathered around them as they lay Fred's body on the ground. A minute later, George came running into the room, and he dropped to his knees by Fred's head. Ginny couldn't stop herself from fully crying anymore, and the next thing she knew her father had his arms wrapped around her. It didn't much help.

"Fred!" A voice yelled, and Ginny's heart sank as her mother ran over to them. She collapsed on the ground, sobbing over Fred's body, and Ginny had to look away. Her father let go of her and went over to her mother, kneeling beside her. He was crying, too; Ginny had never seen her father cry before, and that only made everything more real.

Moving away and looking at the other bodies being laid down, she saw another sight that made everything even worse. Lupin and Tonks were lying side-by-side. Heart sinking further, she thought of baby Teddy, then images of Tonks changing her nose to make Ginny laugh and Lupin teaching her filled her mind and she cried even more. She was surprised there was anything left.

A few minutes later, Ron and Hermione walked over to them, and when Hermione hugged her she finally found the energy to return it. They walked back over to the others, and she thought she glimpsed Harry, but he walked away. Dread filling her once more, she got the terrible sense that he was going to turn himself in. She couldn't lose him, too.

But help was needed. Ginny followed instructions and went to help bring wounded people in so that they could be healed. She tried to fight off her own emotions as she helped others, but she wasn't doing a very good job of it. As the hour neared ending, she was outside with a little girl, and thought she sensed Harry's presence near the forest. Her dread grew worse. He was under the Cloak and going to sacrifice himself, wasn't he? She had to stop him. But what could she say? What could she tell him that he didn't already know? Maybe she was just imagining things.

* * *

She had thought the night couldn't get any worse. But now Harry was dead. As she looked at him, lying there in Hagrid's arms, she felt the strangest sensation. Was this how it felt to lose a war?

But there was still some hope, it seemed. Her heart swelled with pride as Neville made his speech, and as she joined the crowd giving agreement. When the battle reconvened in the Great Hall, she determined not to hold anything back. She was still here. She could still fight. So she would. Joining Hermione and Luna, she dueled Bellatrix Lestrange, and she had never wanted to hurt someone more. Then she saw Bellatrix raise her wand at her, and wondered for a brief second if she, too, would die tonight.

But there was no need. "NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!" her mother yelled, and she felt a great rush of appreciation for her mother. She watched in awe as they dueled, as her mother turned Bellatrix's cruel taunting into only more fuel, and then...

Her jaw dropped. Her mother, Molly Weasley, had just killed someone. Despite the terrible, terrible night, she couldn't help but feel satisfaction. Then Voldemort raised his wand on her mother, and she realized with utter horror that she was about to lose her.

Until... "Protego!" Harry shouted, and Ginny felt a rush of relief as she realized that Harry was alive. He was still alive. The war wasn't over.

As Harry and Voldemort began to circle each other, Ginny watched with rapt attention, until the wand flew into the air, and Voldemort fell, and that was it. The war was over. Harry had done it.

* * *

Hours later, when they had had a bit of rest and were helping with some immediate cleaning, Ginny found Harry. "Hi."

He turned to her. "Hi. Ginny, I'm so sorry about Fred."

She looked down at her feet, blinking back tears. "And what about you?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you sorry about you? About sacrificing yourself like some prick? Hermione told me what happened. You didn't know you would live."

"I had to-"

"Be noble, I know." She was getting heated, and she knew it was irrational, but she couldn't help it. "And you didn't think about how we would feel when you were gone too?"

"Of course I did! But I figured killing Voldemort mattered more."

She swallowed. "I guess-I guess it did." And her anger had dissipated, and now she was crying again, and he was holding her, and she muttered, so quietly she didn't know if he would hear it, "Don't leave me behind again."

"I won't."

* * *

 **A/N: So, I wasn't sure if I would write this chapter, since it's not really part of the time period described, but the last chapter seemed like a poor way to end it, so I hope I did this okay, I did do some research. Thanks to everyone who followed along with this story!**


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